Konami Krazy Racers (Game Boy Advance) review

"For one, it almost makes Konami seem cheap and
unoriginal, because they use Nintendo's formula down to the tiny detail.
For example, in Mario Kart, powerups and items were collected from little
floating boxes... In Krazy Racers, you collect them from little
floating bells."

Introduction:

I'm sure most gamers are familiar with the two very famous Mario Kart
games made by Nintendo. With a handful of characters from the Mario
games, plus tons of cool tracks and features, everyone is sure to love the
Mario Kart games. Anyway, if you liked them, you're sure to like
Konami's Krazy Racers, because, to put it bluntly, it's basically the same
thing.

Gameplay:

As I said before, Krazy Racers' gameplay is nearly IDENTICAL to
Mario Kart. For those of you who aren't familiar with Nintendo's kart racing
seriesg, you drive around in little Go-Carts while using special items
and powerups to race a bunch of familiar characters found in your
favorite games. Anyway, these types of games are tons of fun, and are
generally infamous for their multiplayer action.

In Konami's Krazy Racers, there are 8 characters to choose from, but
unfortunately, only 3 of the characters are known in the U.S. These
three are Dracula, Goemon, and the Ninja from Metal Gear Solid. With 16
tracks to choose from, 2 for each of the 8 games from which the
characters are selected, there is a fair amount of variety. Plus, there are 4
hidden characters, but they're also only from games released in Japan!
(d'oh!) Anyway, to say the least, this game is very fun! When I first
picked it up, I played it for 4 hours on end without putting it down!
I never thought driving around in a go-cart shooting rockets and
turning people into pigs could be so fun!

Unfortunately, there is a problem with the fact that this game is so
much like Mario Kart. For one, it almost makes Konami seem cheap and
unoriginal, because they use Nintendo's formula down to the tiny detail.
For example, in Mario Kart, powerups and items were collected from little
floating boxes... In Krazy Racers, you collect them from little
floating bells. The game mechanics are the same, and most of the powerups
are just equivalents of those found in Mario Kart. I can't STRESS how
much this game is like MarioKart, in fact, I almost feel like I'm playing
some strange sequel version of Mario Kart, made in an alternate
universe.

Sorry to use such a hackneyed and almost cliche phrase, but...
Mario Kart fans will be ''right at home.''

Graphics:

The graphics are a wonder to look at! I'm pleased to say that the
graphics easily exceed those of Mario Kart for the SNES. The backgrounds are
more detailed and the colours are more vibrant. The animations are
smoother, and the effects are more spectacular. While the game isn't 3D, it
uses an improved version of Mode 7 (the engine used in games such as
Star Fox and F-Zero.) I never thought such graphics could be achieved in a
handheld until now.

But, like all games, the graphics aren't perfect. Often, the framerate
is somewhat slow, and there is a certain amount of pixelation. While
these drawbacks are small, and you have to be picky to really notice
them, it still detracts from the gameplay just a tinch. But other than
that, the graphics are great!

Sound:

The sound in Krazy Racers matches the quality of most found on SNES!
With actual voices for each of the characters, and music from all the
game which the characters come from, the sound is a blast! I admit, in
parts, the music is somewhat annoying, but, what can you expect from a
loony, cartoon-style cart-racer?

Story:

This game doesn't have one. Thankfully, that doesn't matter, because
most racing games don't.

Overall:

Nintendo has a lot to be proud of, because, not only did they make two
great games, but several developers have made similar games, and one
company has actually tried to create a near-exact replica of their games,
with it's own characters and levels.

I said this, because I hardly feel I can give Konami the credit for
this game. Sure, technically they did make the game, but the idea is
totally Nintendo's. The graphics, the sound, the characters, the
animation, and a few other things all go to Konami, but the game mechanics, the
idea, the layout, and the overall feel of the game goes to Nintendo.
And, although I almost feel GUILTY for saying this... I feel that
Konami has created a game which matches, if not surpasses, the quality and
fun-factor of the original Mario Kart.

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